The present invention relates to an item of footwear which is intended for sporting use.
It is particularly suitable for protecting a user who is participating in motor sports and more particularly motorcycling. However, it may also be found to be advantageous for use in snowboarding, mounting biking, jet-skiing or hiking, in particular.
WO-A-01 35781 describes an item of footwear of this type, and more particularly a motorcycle boot comprising:                a first rigid shell which defines a body which is intended to receive the foot of a user and which extends in an extension direction,        a second rigid shell which defines an upper which is intended to receive the leg of the user and which extends substantially in an upright direction,        an articulation which connects the body and the upper, said articulation allowing the upper to rotate relative to the body in a transverse direction which is substantially perpendicular to the extension direction and the upright direction, in order to allow flexion of the foot of the user,        stop means comprising a first element which is connected to the body and a second element which is connected to the upper, one coming into contact with the other in order to limit the rotation of the upper relative to the body in the transverse direction within a maximum rotation range,        damping means which produce a couple in the transverse direction opposing the moving together of the first and second stop elements.        
That item has been found to be strong and protects the user effectively. However, it is sometimes desirable to provide a simpler, lighter item which affords greater comfort in use.
Furthermore, U.S. Pat. No. 5,909,885 describes a roller boot which is provided with an energisation device which differs from WO-A-01 35781 in that                the stop means comprise:                    first stop means which comprise a first element which is connected to the body and a second element which is connected to the upper, one coming into contact with the other in order to limit the rotation of the upper relative to the body in the transverse direction in a first rotation direction,            second stop means which comprise a first element which is connected to the body and a second element which is connected to the upper, one coming into contact with the other in order to limit the rotation of the upper relative to the body in the transverse direction in a second rotation direction counter to the first rotation direction,                        the damping means comprise:                    first damping means which produce a couple in the transverse direction opposing the moving together of the first and second stop elements of the first stop means, and            second damping means which produce a couple in the transverse direction opposing the moving together of the first and second stop elements of the second stop means.                        
However, those features are intended to improve the efficacy of the skating and not the protection of the lower leg, in particular the ankle, of the user.